


A Tactician’s Love Strategy

by UntramenTaro



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-24
Updated: 2016-04-24
Packaged: 2018-06-04 07:22:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,564
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6647932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UntramenTaro/pseuds/UntramenTaro
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He could, for the most part, anticipate and predict enemy formations and moves and react properly to it, but when it came to matters of love he had no idea.</p><p>[Yukimura x Corrin; Expanded upon A and S rank supports]</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Tactician’s Love Strategy

It had done him no good to show her that box. Her visits to his room became increasingly frequent, but every time it would be the same thing. 

“I came to see the picture box again.”

Those words kept gracing his ears with every visit, and he soon loathed to hear them. He felt frustrated knowing full well she came to visit him only to see that box, and secretly hoped she would one day come to visit just for him. 

Recently he had thoughts of smashing the box so she could see it no longer, but he could never bring himself to do it. That box held precious memories, not only for Corrin and her parents, but for himself as well. But this box which once gave him comfort now was the source of his anguish; he wished that perhaps, just once, that she would look at him with that same smile she had when she looked at that box.

When she had come in once, he knew what words were to follow and he forced a smile. 

“Ah, Lady Corrin. Have you come to look at my pictures again?”

“Yes. I never get tired of looking at them. They feel so…familiar. And warm. Happy.” 

There was a dull throbbing pain in his chest, and he tried to stifle the rotten feelings that were welling up and threatening to overflow. He felt his face twitch, but he continued to smile. “You may take them with you, if you’d like.” 

“Really? Are you sure? But you’ve taken such good care of them all this time.” 

“They were made for you. I think it is right that you should have them. Please, don’t give it a second thought.” That was right. He had built that box for her, so it would be no surprise that he would give it to her. But he did not decide to give it to her out of generosity, but because he no longer could bear for her to keep visiting.

“Thank you, Yukimura. I’ll take good care of them.” 

“I’m glad you like them so much. I hope these pictures will be a source of strength for you in these difficult times. Just as they were to me.”

“What do you mean?” 

That earnest expression of hers again. He felt guilty and irritated, but he couldn’t bring himself to go against her. 

“After you were taken, I would sometimes look at these pictures. I lost my family when I was young, so looking at these always cheered me up. You all look so happy in them. And I was, of course, very close to your father. And when I felt short of hope, these reminded me there was good in the world. There was still happiness, and family, and honor. Things worth fighting to preserve.”

After he had finished what he had to say, he felt perhaps he had said too much.

“Yukimura… I vow to you, on these pictures—on the honor of my father and my mother… I will protect Hoshido. I will bring peace to this world.”

In that brief moment he knew that she saw him as a link to her parents, nothing more. Closing his eyes, he replied. “Then I once more vow to you: I will give all that I am to help you protect Hoshido.” 

“Thank you. I am honored.” 

“No, milady. The honor is mine.” 

And once they had said their goodbyes, she left with the box and his hopes along with it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As she left with the picture box in her arms, she felt a sense of fear and sadness.

She had been using the box as a pretense to visit him, being much too shy to ever tell him she had come just so she can enjoy being with him. But now that she was the owner of the box, she didn’t know if she could muster up the courage to keep visiting him.

_He feels annoyed I keep coming over to visit. He’s given the box to me because he doesn’t want me to keep pestering him._

These thoughts ran through her mind over and over. She was just a child to him, and only saw her as the same young child that he had drawn all those years ago. She was afraid to tell him that she had liked him and feared being rejected because she could never be a woman in his eyes.

“I’m sorry Lady Corrin, but…”

She could hear those words in his voice every time she thought about being honest with him, and could never bear to think about what he would say next.

When she arrived back at her room, she placed the box down and sighed. She twirled the string at the side of the box with her finger, and thought how wonderful it would be if the grown woman she was now could cheer him up and give him hope and happiness that those drawings of her did.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He had come to her room, just for a moment, to see her and put his aching heart to rest. It had been a while since he had last been with her not on the battle field, and he treasured the peaceful moments he could spend with her.

When she was not there, he nervously glanced about, wondering if he should wait for her to return or if he should leave and not trouble her.

He glanced at the picture box upon her desk, he felt that dull pain in his chest again. It was a reminder that she had stopped visiting him because she had the box now. 

He sat down at the desk, and gently pulled the lid of the box over and tugged at the string to flip through those pictures. Each one he could remember vividly sketching; the memories of the loose pieces of papers he carried around every moment around Lord Sumeragi, Lady Mikoto, and their children and attempting to fervently capture with every line and stroke the moment of a happiness that was never his.

He suddenly was consumed with the desire to draw again, to add more to that box. Those pictures were his memories of her, and no one else’s. His epiphany that his memories of her was what delighted her gave him a newfound confidence. If she would not look at him, he would make her look at him by adding to that box a precious memory that only he alone can make. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He gripped the drawing in his hand, feeling anxious at her reaction. It had taken him several nights to draw a picture that was satisfactory to him that could hopefully convey his feelings to her.

“Lady Corrin, I have something I’d like to give you. Would you take a look?” 

“It’s a picture of the two of us. What made you want to do this?”

“I thought it would be nice to add to your picture-box. Something of an update. To show the woman you’ve grown into and the bond we’ve formed. What do you think?”

When she heard those words, she felt a vague happiness swell in her chest. She could hardly contain her smile knowing that he had, at the very least, considered her a woman. “That’s a great idea! I’ll go get the box.”

“Wait–before we do that, there’s something I wish to tell you.”

“What is it?” 

He took a deep breath, hoping, just maybe, that she would acknowledge his feelings properly and not reject him. “Lady Corrin, when I drew this picture, the bond I wanted to represent… It was not simply supposed to be that between a princess and her advisor. Nor was it only a bond of friendship.”

“W-what do you mean?”

He felt his face grow warm and flushed, but he tried to keep his composure. “I mean that…That is to say… I love you, Lady Corrin!”

“What?!” 

His voice trembled and his body was shaking from the nervousness, but he continued. “I wish to support you in all things. Not only as a servant, but as your husband. When you came back to us, I saw in you the same strengths I saw in your parents. But since then I have come to see so much more. I see someone I could love forever. I wish to stay by your side, always at hand to draw new memories for your picture-box. Memories that we’ll make…together. Would you like that?” 

He held his breath, waiting for her reply. It was do or die, and he was hoping he had not said something that would irreparably ruin their relationship.

“I’m so happy to hear you say that!”

“T-truly?” 

“Yes! As we’ve grown closer, I’ve come to feel the same way about you. Yukimura…will you be with me?”

He felt faint, and wouldn’t be surprised if it was all a dream. But it was a dream he hoped he would never wake up from. “Yes! Yes, of course.” 

“Thank you…I love you so much.” Those words embarrassed her to say, but she was relieved to finally say them.

She threw her arms around him, and he felt the warmth of her body against his. He embraced her gently and sighed, thankful that it was not all a dream.

“We will make new memories together every day, my love.”


End file.
